USA - Japan

The competition kicked off early on 3 July at 15:00 BST. at the Parc des Princes with the Americans taking on Japan. It was a clash that already took place in the London 2012 final and ended in an American victory. The team coached by Emma Hayes came into the match having won everything in the group stage and with an attacking trident that promises dynamite: Trinity Rodman, Mallory Swanson and Sophia Smith. "Honestly, we're like sisters. This group we have now is special and we're having a lot of fun," said Swanson yesterday. For their part, the Japanese side were full of optimism after a dominant display of speed and attacking force in their win over Nigeria. With Futoshi Ikeda's girls overcoming the loss to Spain, the battle seemed assured.

But the USA's quest for a fifth Olympic gold medal in women's football became reality after a scrappy 1-0 win over Japan. They needed extra time to get the win, but Trinity Rodman's excellent finish  in the 107th minute was a worthy match-winner. They now await the winner of the other semi-final between Germany and defending Olympic champions Canada.

Spain - Colombia

A couple of hours later in Lyon, it was the turn of the Spanish team, who were in the midst of their finest hour after winning every possible point in the preliminary round with ease. Their opponent, Colombia, managed to advance by qualifying as one of the best third-placed teams in the tournament. Although Spain have Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmatí in their ranks, who is always a boost, Alexia Putellas has warned her teammates not to underestimate the South Americans. "It's going to be difficult to win everything," said the midfielder, acknowledging that their opponents are defending very well against them. On the other side, the Tricolor had Mayra Ramirez back for this match, returning from suspension after receiving a straight red card.d.

Canada - Germany

Canada, the Tokyo 2020 champions came to try and reach the semi-finals with the relief of having made it out of the group stage in the midst of controversy and with the stage set against them. FIFA deducted six points from the Canadian team because members of their staff were accused of spying on New Zealand's training sessions with a drone. Despite the adverse weather, Andy Spence's players have been pushing through games to reach this point. On Wednesday, they beat Colombia to maintain a 100 percent record in this competition. "We always knew we could do it. The odds were against us, but we did it," said defender Vanessa Gilles, who scored goals against France and Colombia.

On a somewhat shakier footing is the Bavarian side, which, despite scoring four goals against Zambia in their last match, has already conceded a couple of goals to both the Americans and the Australians. Their coach, Horst Hrubesch, has tried to improve the team's defensive tactics, which have so far been the Germans' weak point.

In fact, the match between defending champions Canada and Germany went to a penalty shootout, much like the Spain-Colombia tie before it. The Canadians won't be repeating as gold medallists, though—Germany won 4-2. The hero? Goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger, who saved two spot-kicks and then converted the winning effort.

France - Brazil

France and Brazil close the day's action at La Beaujoire Stadium in Nantes. The Brazilians will be handicapped by the absence of their legendary captain, Marta, who is suspended after receiving a red card against Spain in the last match. Rio's record at these Games is far from encouraging; they have only won once.

Hervé Renard's French side may not have been convincing in the opening round either, but they have a lethal striker in Marie-Antoinette Katoto, the tournament's top scorer with five goals. "Marie leads the team because she is very accurate," Renard said after the 2-1 win over New Zealand on Wednesday. "She doesn't need many chances to score."

Drama was there in the fourth and last women's football quarter-final, with the scores at 0-0 until the end, it appeared that the match was headed to extra-time like the three before it. But Gabi Portilho had other ideas and placed Brazil ahead with eight minutes to play.

Men's last football recap from yesterday

Javier Mascherano's side were knocked out of the Paris 2024 tournament by France 1-0 in the quarter-finals at the Stade Matmut-Atlantique in Bordeaux. Titi Henry's side, who won the 1998 FIFA World Cup on home soil, were defeated by the world champions, who boasted four players from the Qatar 2022 squad.

An early goal (4') from Jean-Philippe Mateta, a near-post header against a static Albiceleste defense, proved to be the only goal of the match. The Crystal Palace F.C. Premier League player's header secured the lead for the French side, who spent the rest of the game on the counter-attack.

The Albiceleste had several clear chances to equalize in both halves, but France's physical strength, solid defense, and Argentina's lack of attacking threat prevented the match from going into extra time. Argentina had twice as many shots on goal (15 to 8) and more possession (61% to 39%), but football is won with goals. The home side scored a second goal in extra time, though it was disallowed for a foul confirmed by the VAR.

With this victory, France confirmed their status as gold medal contenders and will look to solidify their credentials against Egypt on Monday, August 5, at 18:00 CEST at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon. In the semi-finals, the hosts will face Egypt, who had earlier eliminated Paraguay 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw following 90 minutes of regular time and 30 minutes of extra time.

Earlier in the day, the story of the US men's team at the Paris 2024 Olympics came to an end after they were thrashed 4-0 by Morocco at the Parc des Princes in Paris. Marko Mitrovic's side failed to rise to the occasion, allowing the Moroccans to dominate on a sweltering Paris afternoon.

Goals from Soufiane Rahimi (penalty), Ilias Akhomach, Achraf Hakimi, and El Mehdi Maouboub (penalty) sealed the elimination of the USA, who failed to match their best Olympic result (quarter-final at Sydney 2000). This marks a moment of glory for Moroccan football, coming six years before they co-host the World Cup in 2030 with Portugal and Spain, after reaching the semi-finals at Qatar 2022.

In Olympic terms, it will be the first time in history that an African Arab team has reached the semi-finals of an Olympic tournament, having failed to progress beyond the group stage in their previous appearances. They will meet Spain, who defeated Japan. Spain will be looking to avenge their defeat at Qatar 2022, where Morocco eliminated them 3-0 on penalties after a goalless draw following 120 minutes of regulation football.

The European champions and title contenders secured at least a place in the double-medal showdown with a 3-0 win over Japan at the Lyon Stadium, just over four and a half hours south of the French capital. Fermín López scored two of the Iberians' three goals, one in each half, showcasing personality, drive, and talent across the pitch. The other goal for Santi Denia's side came from Abel Ruiz, who dispelled the doubts raised by their defeat to Egypt in the final game of the group stage, a match they had already qualified for.

France and Egypt will meet next Monday, August 5, at the Olympique Lyonnais Stadium at 21:00 CEST. The winner of this match will go on to play for Olympic gold against the winner of the Morocco-Spain match in Marseille on the same day, starting at 18:00 CEST. Reaching the final is significant for both France and Spain, each having one gold medal, as a win would put them just one behind Hungary and Great Britain, who have three. For the African Arabs, it would be their first time reaching the final if they achieve the ultimate glory at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Friday, 9 August, starting at 18:00 CEST.